Wollongong City Council is being widely praised for declaring a climate emergency.
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And the woman who set the wheels in motion couldn't be happier.
But Councillor Ann Martin knows the hard work starts now.
Cr Martin also hopes those councillors who voted against her motion calling on the council to recognise the community is in a state of climate emergency, help lead the way.
Eight councillors and Wollongong Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery backed the motion, which was debated for more than an hour at the council meeting on Monday evening.
But four, including Cr Martin's fellow Ward 3 councillors Dom Figliomeni and Cameron Walters, voted against the motion.
Cr Walters was particularly scathing, labelling the motion a "sham".
"The motion is an absolute insult to the word emergency," he said.
"There's nothing in this motion. It lacks fighting words and action. This motion is a disgrace in its wording and really implies nothing."
His fellow Liberal party members, councillors Leigh Colacino and John Dorahy, also found fault in the motion.
Cr Colacino took particular offense to the word emergency.
"i recognise we are in a state of change, not emergency," he said.
"[Emergency] is a word that has been picked to scare people. I was getting emails to say I'm going to be held accountable with how I vote tonight."
Cr Colacino also argued the council was already doing a significant amount in the space.
"We have recognised, we are responding. Wollongong is doing what is required. Now we are asked to do it again by using another word."
Cr Martin agreed with Cr Colacino that the city council was doing its best to address climate change issues.
But she argued all could do more and took offense at suggestions the motion was a political stunt designed to scare people.
"It is more than symbolic because we are already doing stuff and we intend to continue doing things. We are not sitting on our hands," she said.
"It is all very well for some councillors to seek to trivialise the matter. But you tell that to someone the next time a major front comes through the city and a tree falls on top of their home or we get yet another back to back flash floods in the future or we have bushfire upon bushfire.
"You come back and you tell us that it is a trivial matter.
"It is an emergency. We can't afford to pretend that nothing has happened.
"Forewarned is forearmed."
What does Wollongong's climate emergency declaration mean?
Wollongong City Council's decision to declare a climate emergency is more than just a symbolic move.
But the council doesn't have any real powers, or nor does it want to or intend to force its residents and businesses to make drastic changes.
"This motion is not about attacking industries. It is about bringing them in the fold and saying this is what we hope to do, how can we help you," Cr David Brown said.
"We do not have any coercive powers. Our powers here are cooperation and leading by example. Leading with our own processes, suggesting other processes and getting as many people as possible to follow."
In passing the motion calling on the council to recognise the community is in a state of climate emergency, the council also called for a report to look at the best ways Wollongong can combat climate change.
Wollongong is the 32nd Australian council to declare climate emergency, a move which is more to "stand in solidarity", Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery said.
"We can't change the world but we can do our bit," he told the Mercury.
"[The declaration] was to identity that there is a need for action, but it gave us a platform to highlight basically what we're achieving already.
"We need to work with other agencies and groups in the city and to do our bit ameliorating global gas emissions."
With Desiree Savage